Impact detonator



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IMPACT DETONATOR Filed April a, 1941 Patented July 13, 1943 einen UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE IMPACT DETONATR .Leopold S. Serog, Woodside, LongIsland, N. Y.

Application April 8, 1941, Serial No. 387,527

2 Claims.

The present invention relates to a detonator device for projectiles andmore specifically pertains to means for causing the detonation ofprojectiles violently ejected or discharged and adapted to explode uponimpact.

An object of the invention resides in providing a detonating mechanismwherein energy is stored during sudden forward movement of theprojectile so that the stored energy may be employed for moving a needleof the detonating mechanism to a detonating position when the forwardmovement of the projectile is suddenly arrested.

Another object of the invention resides in providing a detonator forprojectiles including therein means for preventing premature andinadvertent explosion of the projectile.

A more sDecic object of the invention pertains to the provision ofyieldable means in which energy is stored only upon the sudden forwardmotion of the projectile so that the stored energy will be available formoving the needle into engagement with a percussion cap or an igniter ofthe projectile when the forward movement of the projectile suddenlystops.

A still further object of the invention includes the provision of aninertia member in a detonating mechanism which is moved rearwardly uponthe discharge of the projectile for compressing a spring so that thecompressed spring may move a needle of the detonating mechanism into aposition to explode the projectile when the projectile strikes someobstacle.

Other features and objects of the invention will be apparent from aconsideration of the accompanying drawing and the following descriptionof the invention wherein an exemplary embodiment of the invention isdisclosed.

In the drawing:

Fig. l is a longitudinal sectional View of a detonating device embodyingthe invention.

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the detonator taken on the lineII-II of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawing there is shown at I a tubular body memberadapted to form the housing or casing for the detonating mechanism. Theouter part of the body member I is provided With threads 'I for mountingthe detonating device in the shell of a projectile such as an artilleryprojectile adapted to be violently discharged frcm a gun or a mortar.The forward end of the tubular body member I is closed by means of athreaded plug 2. A needle 4 is mounted for sliding movement within therear portion of the tubular body I. For this purpose the casing I isprovided with a substantially cylindrical opening I 5 which terminatesin a forwardly arranged annular shoulder I3. The needle 4 is preferablycylindrical-shaped so as to slide within the cylindrical bore I5 in aguided manner. The rear end of the needle 4 is provided with a pointedprojection 2I which is adapted to engage a percussion cap or other typeof igniting means (not shown) when the needle ll is released forrearward motion as hereinafter described.

A sleeve 5 is mounted for guided slidable movement within an enlargedbore I6 of the body member I. 'I'he sleeve 5 is provided with aplurality of ngers Ill.V These fingers are preferably formed from anintegral part of the sleeve 5 and are circumferentially spaced as shownin Fig. 2. The fingers I0 terminate to provide hookshaped ends I2. Thesehooks or catches I2 are adapted to engage the needle 4 within an annularrecess II provided in the periphery of the needle 4. The body member Iis slightly enlarged at I4 forwardly of the annular shoulder I3 so as toaccommodate thc shank portions of the ngers I0. The needle li and thesleeve 5 are prevented from moving rearwardly from the position shown inFig. 1 by means of the annular shoulder I3. In other words thehook-shaped ends I2 engaging the needle i in the annular recess IIprevent the needle from moving rearwardly and outer portions of thehook-shaped ends I2 engage the annular shoulder I3 so that the needle 4cannot be moved into a detonating position. Thus the projectile cannotbe inadvertently or prematurely exploded.

The detonating mechanism includes means for storing suiiicient energyfor moving the needle l to a detonating position. Such means includes aninert or an inertia member 3. The inertia member is mounted adjacent thesleeve 5 and preferably within the forward end thereof. A spring 6 isinterposed between the inertia member 3 and the needle 4. Any suitablemeans may be provided for maintaining the spring 6 in an operableposition such as the shoulder 22 on the needle 4 and the annular recess23 in the inertia member 3. The spring 5 in the position shown in Fig. 1is not compressed and is thus substantially incapable of exerting anyforce on the needle 4. When the projectile carrying the detonatingmechanism as shown in Fig. 1 is discharged and suddenly moved forwardthe inertia member 3 moves rearwardly in the sleeve 5 and compresses thespring E so as to store energy therein. The sleeve 5 is 4connected tothe inertia member 3 in the rear position thereof by means of yieldableprojections 9 which move radially outward after the inertia member 3 haspassed rearwardly beyond the annular shoulder 8 carried by the sleeve 5.Thus the inertia member 3 is retained in a position to maintain thespring 6 in a compressed state and the inertia member` is also connectedto the sleeve 5. The compression of the spring 6 however cannot move theneedle forwardly since the annular shoulder i3 and the hooked ends I2 ofthe fingers ID prevent the rearward movement of the needle 4.

During the forward travel of the projectile and the detonating mechanismthe velocity of the projectile slowly decreases and the forward speed isreduced. The inertia member 3 and the socket 5 would normally develop atendency to move forward during the decreased speed of the projectile. Aspring I1 is therefore provided between the plug 2 and the forward endof the sleeve 5 which yieldably maintains the socket 5 in the positionshown in Fig. 1.

When the projectile strikes an obstacle or is abruptly stopped theinertia member 3 together with the sleeve 5 and the needle 4 movesforwardly. The forward movement of the sleeve 5 pulls the fingers l andthe hooked ends l2 thereof to a position beyond the forward end of thebore I4. The fingers IB may thus be biased outwardly into the annularspace I so as to be disengaged from the annular recess H. The fingers Ill may be designed to normally move radially outward or the spring 6acting on the needle 4 may cause the arcuate-shaped hooked ends I2 tomove from Ythe annular recess Il. When the needle 4 is released thecompressed sprng 6 expands andthe energy stored therein is suiiicient tomove the needle 4 Arearwardly to a detonating position. Thus theprojectile is discharged when the forward motion is abruptly stopped andsuch abrupt deceleration of the projectile causes the inertia member -3to move the sleeve so as to disconnect the fingers from the needle4.

It will be appreciated that the detonating mechanism is so constructedas to eliminate any danger of premature explosion of the projectilesince the needle cannot be released for movement to a detonatingposition until the spring Vii is compressed and the compression of thespring can only be accomplished by sudden forward movement of Vtheprojectile such as being discharged from a gun. The projectile likewisecannot `be exploded until the shell strikes the objective or someobstacle so as to suddenly stop the forward motion thereof and thus movethe inertia member forwardly so as to disconnect the needle 4 formovement to a detonating position.

While the invention has been described with reference to specificstructural details it will be appreciated that changes may be madetherein by those skilled in the art. Such changes may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in theappended claims.

I claim:

1. A detonator for a projectile comprising, a tubular body member, a capon said body member, a needle slidable in the body member to a reardetonating position, a sleeve slidably mounted in the body member,rearwardly extending fingers carried by said sleeve and terminating inhook-shaped ends, said needle having an annular recess therein forreceiving said hook-shaped ends, an annular shoulder carried by saidbody member engaged by the ends of said fingers and preventing rearwardmovement of said fingers, an inertia member mounted for sliding movementwithin said sleeve and adapted to move rearwardly upon discharge of theprojectile, a spring between the needle and the inertia member adaptedto be compressed .by the rearward movement of the inertia member uponsudden forward movement of the projectile, yieldable projections carriedby the inertia member for engaging the sleeve in the rearward positionof the inertia member, another spring between the sleeve and the cap fornormally maintaining theY sleeve in a retracted position but adapted tobe compressed when the sleeve and the inertia member are moved forwardlyupon sudden deceleration of the projectile so that the hooked ends ofsaid fingers are disengaged from said needle and the first mentionedspring then forces the needle rearwardly to a detonating position.

2, A detonating mechanism for a projectile comprising, a body member, acap for said body member, a needle having an annular recess thereinmounted for movement to a rearward detonating position in the bodymember, a sleeve slidably mounted in the body member, integral fingersextending from the sleeve terminating in hook-shaped ends engaging theneedle in said recess, an annular shoulder carried .bythe body memberengaged by the ends of said fingers preventing rearward movement of thefingers and the needle, means carried by the `body member retaining thefingers in said recess, an inertia member mounted for movement withinsaid sleeve, an untensioned spring extending between the inertia memberand the needle adapted to be tensioned by rearward movement of theinertia member upon sudden 'forward movement of the body member,yieldable projections carried by the inertia member, an annular shouldercarried by the sleeve adapted to be engaged by said yieldableprojections in the rearward position of the inertia member and anotherspring between the cap and the sleeve maintaining the sleeve in itsnormal retracted position and adapted to be compressed when the inertiamember and the sleeve are moved forwardly upon arrested forward motionof the body member so that the ngers are pulled from the means retainingthem in said recess so that the first mentioned spring may force theneedle to a detonating position.

LEOPOLD S. SEROG.

